Fixture stud for outlet boxes



Jan. 6, 1942.

E. H; Ruse FIXTURE STUD FOROUTLET BOXES Filed Aug. 27, 1940 Inventor: Edward HRUCQ,

His AttQrr-wey.

Patented Jan. 6, 1942 U''neral Electric Q0 rRugg,l Bridgeport; onnfassi'gnor to mpan'y, a corpora. tijoril of Application August 27, 1940, Serin No. 354,370 l`e onine. (011243-92193) v exploded view of the elements oi my supporting vMy invention relates to a box supporting device''andfmo're lparticularly to a? fixture stud a'ssieiribly`` for '-'mounting" fan" electrical outlet box onanassociated support,'""s'uch as a barhanger; for use inhouse wiring systems.

` In'r'esidence wiringv systems it is customary to mount outlet boxes in position by "means of'a bar hanger fastenedto the framing of the house; In such casesastud assembly'is usually employed. Thisv studl assembly" accomplishes two purposes;

first, the" stud'is' supported'onthefbar hanger bya portionof theasslembly which projects be'- yond the confines of the box; second, thevoutlet bo'xis'supported` `by a'portion' ofthe assembly whichY extends within the-interior vof lthe box. It is `in'iportant that-"the-outlet l`box be slidably mounted on Athe-"bar hanger to: permit adjustmentr` or centering of` the-out1etbox"inanypar'- ticulariinstallation. To accomplish 4this -result the mounting stud` is usually`movable' along the b'ar hanger and is secured: in anychosenposition by 'means of ar lock screw inserted Vthrougl'rrthe stud and engaging the bar hanger. Then the outlet box; in turn, is mounted-onthe stud by aseparate means which usually" consists of a nut threaded around the .shank of` the @stud Aassembly within the outlet box. When this construction' is employed, two separate adjustments are neoessaryto position the stud directly on the bar hanger and to hold the outlet box inposition on the stud.- However, my-invention contemplates ythe provision of only a single locking means to accomplish both purposes, that is, to mount the stud in position onI the bar hanger and to retain the outlet box in position on the stud. It is an object of my invention to provide an improved and simplied form of stud assembly for adjustably Vsecuring'an outlet box to a bar hangerY in whicha single adjustment is employed to accomplish the aforementioned twopurposes orfmounting the stud in position on the bar hanger and securing the outlet box yin position on'the stud. A' Another object of my invention is the provision of 'a new and 'improved box supporting'device i which comprises relatively few parts such that it may be manufacturedat low cost and which may be quickly'andeasi'ly installed in position.

,In the accompanying drawing Fig. 1 is a plan view of thev interior of outlet box y.showing my'box supporting devicey in position; Fig. 2 is asectionalfview through an outlet boxand the box' 'su porting device showing these elements in 'on afb'arhanger, vand VV13' is'an leasyoinsertion of the bar Ahanger.v The flat sur- "Referring to the drawing I have shown my box supporting'fdev'ce'mounting -an outlet'box- IfIl on a Vsurcrorting strap I Isuclf as a bar hanger. The outletbox is provided vWithacentrally disposed opening`|2 in the bottom Walliof the box through which .the box' supportingr device extends for securing the outlet" box inposition on the'hanger. In" some cases', the f opening 'I 2 vmay be formed ,by permanentlypunching out the bottom of thev box, Whereas' Ain other 'cases it may beformed by a lnlockout. Referring more particularly to Fig. 3, my box supportingdevice comprises a vstud I3 having a i headportion' III-Aat one' end and a threaded'shank I5 at -the other; V'The head portion of the stud is of a si'ze" and configurationto` extend through the opening I2 in thebotton'of/ the "outlet box. In order to receive theba'r 'hanger II; 'the' head portionis.providediwitha recess-I6 which is of a; conhg'u-ratio'n corresponding to that of fthe bar hanger: 1l'n'v the form 'illustrated by the drawing theba'r hangerfisofa rectangular shape and the recess I6 is correspondingly formed but, manifestly','l the"bar hanger l:may be given Yother'shapes depending 'upon the rparticular"installation vwith which "it-'is t6 be used:l The threaded portion of the stud is provided' withl a hollowedout or well portion IIfwhich isse'parated from"y the recess' I6 by'aA web I8."y The'web I8 is 'provided'with a tapped opening I9 for rec'eiving'a'J lockingl screw 20. In mounted positionvthe'shank ofsthe screw extends partiallydnto the-recess lli, while 'the rh'eadedfen'd of' the-screw `is'retained within the well-H1, so that itfisout of -the YWay of the electrical wiring Within the box yet is easily accessible for adjustment lby a -screw driver. Opposite sides of the fixture stud-are provided withrchamfered or fiat surfaces, which expose the recess I6 for face 2-I on one side of-thexture stud extends vfrom a point adjacent the top of the head portion I4to a point-adjacent thatv at 4which the threads areappliedto theishank' ofthe stud. 'The other Acomplete screws threads are available for mountving an electric lighting fixture',"or the like, on

the shank 'of' the stud.` VThis is of' importance vsince "if Azthe'ilatrv 'surface 22V extended to` the" edge 'of-tr'ieifsnank the eontiixiity' of the threads would be broken, making it difficult to thread the nipple of the lighting fixture on the stud.

The enlarged flat surface 22 exposes the well I1 to the side of the stud through an opening 23 to provide for mounting of a clamping member 24 in a manner now to be described.

The clamping member` 24 comprises a curved or horseshoe-shaped bearing portion 25 provided with an extending tongue portion 26 which extends below the plane of the bearing surface 25 10 and which is adapted to extend through the opening 23 in the fixture stud into the interior of the well I1. The portion of the tongue extending Within the well is provided with an opening 21 for receiving the locking screw 2l). The 15 clamping memberl stud and screw are assembled together as a unit as shown in Fig. 2. 'Ihe curvature of the bearing surface is such that it surrounds the opening I2 in the bottom of the outlet box. At the same time the area of this 20 surface is suli'icient to insure adequate clamping action against the bottom wall of the outlet box.

To mount the outlet box on the bar hanger the head of the stud is inserted through the opening I2 and thereafter the bar hanger is 25 slipped through the recess I6. This leaves the bearing member 24 on the interior of the outlet box an'd in engagement with the bottom wall of the box. Thereafter the screw 20 is tightened. Inasmuch as the bearing member is in engage- 30 ment with the wall of the box, tightening of the screw 20 draws down the fixture stud and the bar hanger into engagement with the outer wall of the outlet box. This means that; the wall v of the outlet box is securely clamped between the bar hanger I I and the bearing member 24. At the same time the head of the stud is held iirmly in position cn the bar hanger and cannot be moved transversely thereof. v

In case the fixture stud and the bearing member are originally disassembled, the vstud may be mounted on the outlet box and the bar hanger by an alternative method. The stud is first mounted on the bar hanger II by inserting the hanger through the recess I6, and then the threaded portion of the stud is inserted through the opening I2 in the wall of the outlet box into the interior thereof. Thereafter, the tongue of the clamping member is slipped into the well .L I'I and the locking screw placed in position and 50 tightened to bring the clamping member into engagement with the wall of the outlet box.

My invention greatly simplifies the manner of mounting the outlet box and adjusting the ai.; stud on the hanger due to the fact that but a single tool, such as a screwdriver, is needed to accomplish both of these operations. In former constructions it was necessary to provide a locking nut on the threaded shank to hold the outletfI box on the stud in addition to a central locking screw to hold the stud in position on the hanger. By my construction, however, a single locking screw performs both of these functions. The tongue 26 extends downwardly at an angle fromf.- the bearing surface 25 to the interior of the well 65 I'I, so that as the screw 20 is tightened up sufficient force is transmitted to the wall of the outlet box to hold the assembly rigidly in posi-l tion. The tongue 25 is made amply strong tot prevent bending. Even though the bearing member 24 engages the wall of the outlet box on a side of the fixture stud, it has been found that the stud is not tipped out of the vertical position due to the fact that the clamping actionii. of the plate brings the bar hanger tightly into position with the outer wall of the outlet box thereby maintaining the fixture stud in vertical position. Since the flat face 22 on the side o'f the fixture stud is spaced from the end of the stud, several complete threads are provided adjacent the end of the stud for easy threading of a mounting hickey of an associated lighting fixture. This is accomplished simply by threading the hickey onto the shank I5; inasmuch as the tongue 26 extends upwardly at an angle from the point at which it enters the well I1 an ample number of threads are available for securely fastening the hickey in position. The bearing member 24 may be formed of punched sheet metal so that it lies close to the bottom Wall cf the box and takes up a minimum of room within the box. This greatly increases the space available for wiring. Inasmuch as all adjustments of the box and stud are performed by means of a screwdriver operating on the locking screw 20, it is easy to make such adjustments when the box is filled with wiring assembly simply by inserting a screwdriver into the interior of the box and engaging the locking screw 20. It is unnecessary to remove any part of the wiring assembly.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A support for mounting an outlet box having an opening in the bottom wall thereof on a bar hanger comprising, in combination, a stud having a portion on the exterior of the box adapted to grip the bar hanger, and a threaded portion within the interior of the box adapted to cooperate with an electric fixture or the like, a locking screw. the threaded portion of the stud being hollowed out to receive said locking screw, and a clamping member cooperating with said stud and being located within the interior of the outlet box and engaging the wall thereof, said clamping member having a tongue extending within the hollow portion of said stud and cooperating with said locking screw to lock the outlet box and stud in position on said hanger on tightening of said screw.

2. A mounting assembly for supporting an outlet box having an opening in a wall thereof on a bar hanger comprising, in combination, a stud member located in said opening and having a portion extending on the exterior of said box provided with a recess for receiving the bar hanger, said stud being provided with a threaded extension located within the interior of the box and having a hollow portion provided with an opening extending through the side of the stud, a locking screw threaded in said stud within the hollow portion and a clamping member cooperating with said stud and adapted to engage the wall on the interior of th'e outlet box, said clamping member being provided with a projecting portion extending through the opening in the stud into the hollow portion and cooperating with said locking screw to clamp the wall of the outlet box between the bar hanger and the clamping member upon tightening of said screw.

3. A mounting device comprising a stud provided with a head portion and threaded shank portion, the head portion being provided with a recess for receiving a bar hanger, the shank portion being provided with a hollowed-out portion separated from said recess by a web, a locking screw threaded vinto said web, a portion, of the wall of said shank portion being brokenv away to expose the interior of the hollowed-out portion to the side of the stud, a clamping member having a tongue extending into the interior of the hollowed-out portion through the exposed side thereof and cooperating with said locking screw, said stud being adapted for insertion through an opening in the wall of an outlet box with a bar hanger extending through said recess on the exterior of said wall and the clamping member being located within the box and engaging the interior Wall of said outlet box, whereby the wall of the box is clamped between a bar hanger and the clamping member upon tightening of said` locking screw.

4. An assembly for mounting an outlet box on a bar hanger comprising, in combination, a stud extending through `an opening in the wall of the box and having a portion on the exterior of the wail provided with a recess for receiving a bar hanger, another portion of the stud extending within the outlet box and provided with a threaded shank, the shank portion being provided with a well having a side opening exposing the interior of the weil, a locking screw mountedon saidl shank portion within said well and a clamping member having a curved bearing surface extending around a portion of the perimeter of the opening in the wall of the outlet box and bearing against the Wall of the box, said clamping member being provided with a tongue portion extending through said side opening into the interior of the well and cooperating with said locking screw, the wail of outlet box being clamped between the bar hanger and the clamping member upon tightening of said locking screw.

5. A mounting assembly for an outlet box having an opening in a Wall thereof comprising, in combination, a stud member located in said openingand having a portion on the exterior of the outlet box provided with a recess for receiving a bar hanger therethrough, another portion of said stud extending into the interior of said outlet box, and being provided with a threaded extension, said threaded extension being provided with a hollowed-out portion separated from said recess by a web, a locking screw threaded into 

